The Way

Gene Wilkes Sometimes God puts people in your life who you know will have a lasting impact on you. Many times you can count your own family members; mom,dad, brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles and I am thankful that God has blessed me with those kind of family members. So many of them have helped shaped me. Sometimes He places people in your life that you run in to every once in awhile but regardless how often you see them, they just impact and influence and continue to do so. I have many men in my life who have invested in me and for them I am truly grateful. There is one guy who I met about 25 years ago who just keeps influencing me whether directly or through his writings. C. Gene Wilkes is a guy who gets it. He has written some of the most meaningful stuff on leadership including Jesus on Leadership and Paul on Leadership (the Apostle, not me) and another great book called My Identity in Christ. If you have not read any or all of these, then in my opinion, you a...

This was an interesting weekend at the Turner's. Shelbi had been in China for two weeks with Show Hope and was to return on Friday night but with bad weather across the northern part of the US, she made it to Newark and then flew to Washington Dulles and that was as far as she was able to get. We got her a hotel not far from the airport and she spent the night and got home on Saturday morning. She had a great trip and you can read some of her exploits here . Her boyfriend Mark was surprising her by having some time off from his summer job at Winshape , so he drove over on Friday and was with us Friday and Saturday. He might have thought it a little awkward being at our house without Shelbi but hey, he got to do his laundry and eat some non-camp food so I think overall he was pretty good with it. Friday night was also rehearsal and rehearsal dinner for Kyle and Rachel's wedding that I was officiating on Saturday at 530p outdoors. The trick was that we needed no rain which we g...

The last couple of posts I have done have dealt with leadership and leaders surrounding themselves with people who have diverse ideas than them. Surrounding yourself with people just like you is a very precarious position to be in as a leader. This week I attended the SBC as an observer. I went to work the LifeWay booth as part of my work assignment. I enjoyed seeing old friends and making new ones and especially encouraging pastors and youth leaders.Many of those who attend the SBC use this event as their family vacation and it is always fun to play with the kids and talk with the teenagers who come with their families. One of the things that stood out to me this year was the evidence of good leadership displayed by good leaders. Kevin Ezell of High View in Louisville, KY was the President of the SBC Pastor's Conference this year and did a great job of getting a diverse group of speakers to challenge and encourage attendees. Kevin is one of those younger leaders (we are about ...

Okay so my last post on the whole leadership thing has brought quite a few comments and one of the statements I made in particular has resonated and concerned some posters. Here it is - Surrounding ourselves with people just like us is dangerous. We fail to recognize that we could be wrong. Here is a little background on why I made that statement. In looking through the group of Twelve that Jesus hand picked to be his disciples, there is great diversity of occupation and thinking. He called a couple of sets of brothers, fishermen, a zealot (anti-gov't) and a tax collector (gov't guy). Not to mention a guy who He knew would betray him and another deny Him. In no way am I thinking that Jesus went into His Dad's mission thinking He might make a mistake, but he chose 12 not only for immediate Kingdom work, but Kingdom work that would continue even through today and beyond. If Jesus thought it important to grab 12 from many walks of life, ideals, occupations, and diversity of t...

You ever wonder why so many good things go bad? I guess because of have many failures that I have caused and lived through, it gets me to wondering at times why something can be going along so well and then the wheels come off in a heartbeat. I do not know the answer but I have surmised that most failures come about through a series of smaller things that go unnoticed or neglected. I have discovered in my own life that when I refuse to allow people with differing opinions or ideas to hang around me and speak into my life, that I quickly climb on the road to failure. Surrounding ourselves with people just like us is dangerous. We fail to recognize that we could be wrong. Arrogance and pride come crashing in and invade our hearts and minds and failure is just around the corner. I am far from perfect, just ask my wife and daughters and anyone who spends any time with me. But I am learning that the counsel of many is wise. James 1:5 reminds us that if any of us lack wisdom, all we ne...

I ran across this commercial from the Salvation Army. Love what they do to help others and this commercial is well done in my opinion.

I had always hoped that I would at least get to see the great Coach Wooden in person if not personally meet him. He was one of my heroes though I never was any closer to him than being in the same city at the same time a few times. Coach Wooden was a great man. He was a wonderful husband. His coaching accomplishments unmatched. He was a man's man, hands down. He loved Christ, his family, and he loved basketball. All three things that I would include in my list of "loves". Coach Wooden, you will be missed. Thanks for allowing the light of Christ to shine through you. You influenced many directly who had the opportunity to be around you personally, but you helped shape and influence many of us from a distance. Here is a tribute to Coach Wooden written by Bill Walton almost 10 years ago. I like what it says and how it captures some of the greatness of Coach Wooden. THE COACH On the 21st of the month, the best man I know will do what he always does on the 21st of the ...

I am an American and so very thankful and proud to be American. I am reminded of a SNL skit that parodied George W. Bush saying, "You know why I like America? Because it is full of Americans." I have to agree. Many times I think that I have placed being American above being a Christ-follower. Please do not get me wrong. I am incredibly thankful for the hundreds of thousands who have died gaining and preserving our freedom in this great nation. I am grateful for the men and women who have served, are serving and will serve this great nation. But I am also convicted that I have placed living the American dream and chasing after that dream as priority rather than chasing hard after Christ. I have been lazy and lax at times in resting on my laurels instead of fighting for and preserving true freedom that comes only through Christ. I am grateful for our freedom in this land. Because of that great freedom, I have great responsibility to share of the wealth that we are afforde...